Factions
by emmi-hime
Summary: Katara is a member of the Blue class at her high school. Zuko is a Red class member. Ozai is the bigoted principal, who believes that the Red class is superior. Katara takes the time out of her busy schedule to knock Zuko's lights out... AU. Pleaz read!
1. Chapter 1: Bad Beginning?

Dedication: This is for my good friend Spaz (Stephanie), who had her birthday party yesterday… It was fun, even though the birthday-girl squealed in superhuman pitches for every gift that was opened… (I took that as a sign that she liked her gifts…)

A/N: This is in an AU

Factions

There are four factions at my high school. There is the Red, Green, Yellow, and Blue class – but really, you're either a member of the Red class, or not.

This is how we are classified.

The Red class isn't anything special, but the principal of our school happens to be Ozai, an alumnus of the Red class.

By his rules alone, the Green class (50% of the school population), the Yellow class (5%), and the Blue class (15%) are treated like dirt.

Doesn't sound fair, does it?

It isn't really… but we learn to deal.

As for myself… I am a proud member of the Blue class.

Our classes are stuck on the outskirts of the school. Our rooms are colder and more exposed to the elements, so it is easy to recognize us in a crowd; not only by our blue-colored school uniform, but by the heavier jackets we wear.

As for word duties, we get to look after the many fountains dotted around the school and take care of the school's swimming pool.

In other words… we Blue class students are left with the cold and the wet.

It's hardly surprising that we end up contracting colds and fevers more than any other class.

Because of this, we also had to pick up some first aid knowledge and learn some basic medical tricks.

When it comes to healing the sick and all that jazz, I happen to be the best in my class…

Not too shabby, eh?

I'm awfully proud of it, but I've heard those spoilt Red class kids badmouthing me… and my skills.

So… (how to put this lightly?)

… I punched their leader's lights out.

I'm telling you, it's not my fault. Zuko's been ticking me off for years now.

Sure… he doesn't actually _do_ anything to us non-Red class kids, but he makes no move to stop his cronies from cracking rude jokes or beating us to pulp after school.

All in all, he's a jellyfish.

He's a spineless jerk who's floating along in the Red-classes wake.

I can't _stand_ guys like him.

What's more, I've been ordered by some snobby Red-class teacher to clean up Zuko's bloody mess of a face.

You can imagine how _happy_ I am to be alone in an infirmary with him.

Maybe it's one of those "you break it, you buy it" sort of things.

After all, he is the principal's _precious_ son… wouldn't want the _little prince_ to be in pain, or worse yet, have a scarred face.

Sighing, I threw the bloody paper towel over my shoulder into the wastebasket without sparing a look behind me.

Needless to say, I spent a lot of time in here patching people up. It's rather sad, really…

"So," the jerk began. "What was that for?"

"What?" I asked obstinately. "Do you mean my awesome throw or slugging you back there?"

Raising his eyebrows in an aggravated manner, he answered, "The obvious one."

"Okay," I began, sitting down on the bed opposite him. I explained, "You and your spineless attitude piss me off. Happy?"

He gave me another look that demanded an answer. "And… is that all?"

"And you could make a difference!" I added, my temper snapping. "You hold power in this school! You could change the way this stupid school makes it a given for the Reds to spit in the direction of the non-Reds! You could change the fact that we non-Reds are expected to bow and scrape to you! That's what I think!"

"There's nothing I can do about any of that," Zuko replied, indifferent.

"Like hell!" I remarked, furious. "You're Ozai's son! If you tell one of your Red cronies to jump, they're gonna' ask how high!"

"In other words, I have power through association," he summed up. I nodded mutely, drained from my fury. "Which pretty much means… that no one I hang with is a friend; they just want to get in my father's good graces," he stated matter-of-factly.

I started to nod, but stopped. "Oh," I remarked, not sure of what to say. I could tell that pity was evident on my face. "Sorry…"

"Don't be," he said distantly. "I knew all of this already. You just have a tendency to bring up sensitive subjects."

"How would you know?" I joked, trying to lighten the mood. "You've never met me before this… _incident_."

"True," he agreed. "I don't even know your name, but I've seen you around. You always seem curious (or should I say nosy?), and from my observations, you're used to having a lot of people come crying to you about various things."

"Umm… okay…" I answered awkwardly.

"Ah! I'm not a stalker or anything!" he protested, obviously flustered. "I just get bored a lot when a bunch of those brown-nosers cluster around me. I usually just zone out and do some good, old-fashioned people-watching."

Nodding, I thought back. When had I been in a position to be observed by Zuko?

Aha! Cleaning up the Hub Fountain! That particular fountain rested in the courtyard in the center of the school. The Red classrooms centered around this courtyard. Most of the time, the school's nucleus was off-limits to non-Reds, but all non-Reds had a school period called "service hour."

Basically… Ozai cuts down on the cost of hiring janitors by teaching "the values of dedicated hard work for a good cause."

At least, that's what it says in the school's brochure.

I don't know how he manages to explain away the fact that Reds don't need to take the class…

Looking up at my patient, I asked, "Was it during my service hour?"

Nodding, he remarked, "Most of the days you were in the Hub, you were with a short, rambunctious Yellow-boy, a lazy, blind Green-girl, and an unintelligent-looking Blue-boy who would often sneak off with the auburn-haired Green-girl who was supposed to be trimming the bushes.

Amused by his descriptions, I smiled and held back my giggles. "That would be Aang, Toph, Sokka (he's my brother), and Suki (his girl friend). They're all my friends… and we all chose to be on the same service crew."

Zuko thought about this for a moment before remarking, "It must be hard to be the only one who actually works…"

Unable to restrain my laughter, I let loose and ended up clutching my aching belly and gasping for air.

"I don't see how that was funny…?" Zuko added, clearly puzzled.

Still somewhat short of breath, I countered, "Oh, but it is! Because it's so true! Aang prances about, playing games. Toph lies down and chews on random plant stems like a cow chewing cud. And Suki tries to work, but Sokka pulls her away so they can make out in some deserted corner of the school…"

Somehow, my little speech had ended in a note of dissatisfaction and a touch of annoyance.

Now irritated at myself for thinking ill of my friends, I went and sealed several handfuls of ice inside a sandwich-sized Ziploc bag. Handing it to my silent patient, I motioned for him to place it over his left eye, which seemed to already be turning black and blue.

"That'll be a nasty black-eye," I whistled, rather impressed.

"And whose fault is that?" Zuko remarked.

Before I could respond angrily to his words, I bit it back, realizing that his voice hadn't been angry. It hadn't even been gloomy, for goodness sake! If anything… it was _teasing_.

"What?" Zuko asked, as he caught me gaping at him. Lightly, he added, "Do I have something on my face besides blood and bruises?"

Feeling a smile spread across my face, I replied. "_Another_ joke? You might want to watch out, Zuko, or I might just die from the shock of it all!"

"Is it really that difficult to believe?" he asked, his mouth quirking up on one side.

"Heck yes, it is!" I swiftly answered. "I need to go check my calendar. There may be a blue moon tonight!"

"Haha, very funny…" he replied, shaking his head with a sad smile on his face.

Looking at him, concerned, I softly teased, "What? Can't stand having your chain yanked?"

"No," he replied, looking up at me. "Just not used to it."

"Well, lucky for you, that can be fixed," I countered, stoutly putting my hands on my hips. "Now! You're all patched up! Time to skid-daddle!"

"Hey," he said getting up. "Next time you're the only one working in your service hour, feel free to work as hard as your friends and come over to talk to me."

I nodded with an amused smile as he turned towards the door.

Grinning at his retreating back, I realized something important.

"Hey, Zuko!" I called out as he reached for the doorknob. "My name is Katara."

Turning around to smile at me, he whispered, "Pleasure to meet you… Katara," before exiting the infirmary building.

Staring after him, frozen, I jolted myself into motion and absently reached my hands up to my cheeks. They felt hot.

I wonder if I'm developing a fever…

A/N:

Insane self: MWAHAHAHA!!!

Sane self: Please excuse me… I was up 'til five this morning reading fanfics… Obviously, six hours of sleep is insufficient…

Insane self: Not if you want to _write_ fanfics!!! *sing-song voice*

Sane self: *sigh* Sad… but true. Somehow… lack of sleep has endowed me with the idea for this fanfic… so I let it out.

Insane self: BWAHAHAHA!!! SEE!!! I SHALL RULE SUPREME!!!

[Scuffle occurring out of view. Vague sounds of bitch-slapping can be heard. Both selves come back into view. The Insane self is a _little_ worse for wear…]

Sane self: Sorry about that… I just had to take care of something for a moment.

[Insane self collapses from exhaustion… and other things.]

Anyhow… thank you for reading! Please review! If you don't want to criticize or gush, please tell me if this should by continued or left as-is…


	2. Chapter 2: One on One Time

Dedication: This one is to my computer… So far this summer, we've been practically inseparable… I just hope in can continue to put up with me (the internet has been on the fritz so I'm worried that the computer will jump on the bandwagon).

Disclaimer: Do not own (except for the brilliant bits I added, like the school, the story, the once-mentioned Mrs. Hamilton, and the fish-face detention teacher who is nameless).

A/N: Sorry I took so long putting this up! Forgive!

XXXXXXXXX

"So..."

"Yeah…"

Zuko and I were sitting on the side of the Hub Fountain. Together. With all of the Reds staring at me like I was a disease. Sick bastards!

"I heard that you were assigned a detention for this," Zuko remarked awkwardly, pointing to his black eye.

"Yep!" I replied, nonchalant. "You heard right…"

"I guess I'll just have to do something to get in detention, then," he said, surprising me.

"Huh?" I was at a loss for words.

"Well…" he began slowly. "It seems to me that you had a good reason for giving me this - even if I'd rather you hadn't…"

A grin lit up my face. "Well, someone's in a good mood today," I teased.

"That, and you promised to give me lessons on being teased," he added with a twinkle in his eye (not so much the one that was almost swollen shut).

"When did I promise that?" I asked, crossing my arms over my chest.

"Yesterday," he breathed, leaning in close to me. "In the infirmary…" Seeing me shake my head 'no' he added with a mock look of pain on his face, "It's the least you can do after what I've suffered…"

"Aww, quit it!" I grinned, giving him a friendly push.

"So what do you say?"

"None of my business if you want to end up in detention!" I said, holding my hands up in defeat.

"What can I say?" he teased. "I'm just a bad kid." Giggling, I didn't notice the looks of hatred and envy directed at me by the girls from the Red class…

XXXXXXXXXXXX

"So you really did find a way to get in trouble then, eh?" I asked Zuko as he approached my desk in the worn-out and dimly lit detention room.

"No…" he replied, pushing his hair back in embarrassment. "I had to 'borrow'

a detention pass from one of the guys in my class." He stared at my laughing face, not seeing how I could find it so funny.

Trying to explain, he continued, "No one would admit I'd done anything wrong… I tried starting a fight, putting a tack in the teacher's seat… I even set off the fire alarm…"

"Oh…" I realized. Giggling, I choked out, "So that was you!" After several moments of clutching my aching stomach, I added, "Thanks, though, you got me out of my least favorite class for half the period…"

This time we both succumbed to our laughter.

It felt nice. Sitting next to Zuko - and laughing. It felt warm. I hadn't felt warm like this in ages…

"What are you two doing!" the detention teacher reprimanded as she came into the room. "No talking in detention!"

"Sorry…" Zuko began. After a moment's thought, though, he coldly added, "Although, seeing as how we came in early - _to detention_, and it isn't supposed to start for another two and a half minutes… I'm sure you wouldn't mind if we chatted for a bit longer."

The teacher blanched at his commanding tone and opened her mouth to speak – but no words came out. Sitting down sharply in her seat, she blinked a few times, her mouth still hanging open. Finally, she closed her jaw (with what seemed like a great force of will), and she silently decided to ignore us for another two minutes.

Sensing his victory, Zuko immediately turned back around to face me, prepared to continue where we'd left off.

Shaking my head in disbelief, I muttered, "You've got guts, boy… and probably an authority issue or two…"

Cocking his head to the side and giving me a half grin, he whispered conspiratorially, "It's part of my charm."

No way to argue with that…

XXXXXXXXXXX

Oddly enough, we ended up being the only two in detention (except the slack-jawed teacher, of course).

Barely a minute after detention "officially" begun, I felt the sharp end of a folded piece of paper on my elbow. Looking at the seat directly behind me (where Zuko was seated), I saw him passing me a note.

Opening up the folded sheet of paper, I read:

_Hey Katara,_

_I just realized something… How'd you end up on the same service crew as your friends?_

_From all that I've heard, most members of any given service crew are all from the same class._

_How'd you pull off the impossible?_

Pulling out my pen, I replied:

_Well…_

_You know that Toph is blind, right?_

_All the teachers think that she's a delicate little thing that needs to be helped constantly just because she's handicapped…_

_When in reality, she's a tough girl who is more likely to be throwing punches than ask for help._

_Anyways…_

_My brother had one of his genius ideas! _

_He told Toph what she needed to do, so she went up to our homeroom teacher (our homerooms are intermixed & the homeroom teachers are in charge of service crews). She gave Mrs. Hamilton a teary eyed look and asked ever so politely to choose her crew…_

_Mrs. Hamilton said "yes," so here we are._

Passing the note behind me, I could practically feel him reading the note. His eyes seemed to be visible to me at all times, even when I was most definitely _not_ looking at _him_.

After a little while, the note came back to me.

_Hmm…_

_I have an idea for something, but I'm not going to tell you what it is until I'm certain I can pull it off._

_Sorry if I'm not making any sense at the moment. I'm scheming so much it's making my head hurt._

Smiling a little, I wrote:

_You know…_

_I'm really glad that you're not the obnoxious jerk I thought you were!_

_Just imagine! If you were, I would be stuck here alone!:3_

_Thanks for being here (don't see how you could be so nice to me after I gave you a black eye)…_

_Anyway, I can't wait to get out of detention. _

_I have to walk several miles to get home. I would take the bus, but I've noticed that there always seems to be an old guy with a scruffy beard there drinking out of a glass bottle stuck in a paper bag._

_Hardly a good idea…_

_Sure, Aang doesn't mind sitting down beside him and talking to pass the time until the bus arrives, but that kid has a way with people!_

_I swear, he could charm perfect stranger into doing what he wants!_

_I don't think that your father is charmed by him, though. If anything, Ozai has an adverse reaction to Aang's peppiness. The poor boy gets sent to detention every time Ozai sets eyes on him…_

The note was passed back and then forward again. Zuko wrote:

_The Yellow-boy does seem like he could be a bit of a pain if he wasn't in a chipper mood._

_I don't know for sure, though. I've never met your friends._

XXXXXXXXXXX

Walking out of the detention room into the evening light, Zuko and I paused for a moment to adjust our senses from the small, bright room to the soft, gray world around us.

"You said you had a ways to walk," Zuko began, cutting into the silence. "I can give you a ride, if you'd like."

"I'd love that," I replied, grinning.

Leading the way to the student parking lot, he held the door open for me as I sat down in the passenger seat of his car. I grinned my thanks.

Driving out onto the streets, we shared a comfortable silence, only disturbed by my occasional directions and the soft background music coming out of the radio.

"Here," I said, pointing to my house.

Pulling over to park by the curb, Zuko motioned for me to wait. He got out of the car (leaving his backpack behind) and opened my door for me.

"So…" he remarked, walking with me to the door.

"Yeah…" I commented, unsure of what to do as a goodbye.

Uncertain, Zuko waved and began walking back to his car.

Fighting through a momentary hesitation, I dropped my backpack on the ground, trotted up to Zuko, and gave him a quick around-the-waist hug from behind, murmuring, "Thanks for the ride."

Running quickly back to my door, I took out my key and fled inside, still able to feel his well-defined chest muscles beneath my hands.

As for Zuko, he was grinning foolishly as he drove away in his car.

Sokka shook his head over the proceedings. On his way to his room, he peeped at his sister through her open door.

I had ran to my room and flopped down on my bed right after entering the house.

Now I was engrossed in staring up at my white ceiling. I couldn't get Zuko out of my head…

XXXXXXXXXX

A/N:

Insane self: YES! I DID NOT ABANDON YOU READERS! OH, MY POOR LOST LAMBS!

Sane self: You're making a fool of yourself. Stop it.

Insane self: I don't care! Technically, you and I are one and the same, so I'm also making a fool out of you!

Sane self: You're supposed to be insane. Insane people aren't supposed to use logic. Stop that, too.

Insane self: You're just jealous of my stunning good looks!

Sane self: We share the same body, dumb-nut.

Insane self begins to leap about like a ballerina, absorbed in her own world.

Sane self: Anyways… Thanks for reading, please review, sorry if Zuko was about OOC, but the author (the combination of me and the idiot that's prancing about) decided that she wanted to show Zuko's sweet side… and how he was really becoming attached to Katara.

But if you're still worried, confused, or conflicted over his new attitude, you have three options.

REVIEW!!! TELL ME ALL ABOUT IT!

Wait. I plan to make Zuko have moody moments (after all, he still has to be introduced to Katara's friends… Zuko isn't so good with strangers…)

DO BOTH! REVIEW AND WAIT! PLEASE! I LIKE THIS OPTION BEST!


	3. Chapter 3: Meeting the FriendsFamily

Disclaimer: If you need reassurances that I do not own these characters… I must direct you to my previous disclaimers… I'm sure that they are much more eloquent than this one.

Dedication: In this chappie, I am giving a shout-out to jennibare for getting my creative juices flowing for my 'fics… YOU ROCK! (Kudos also to anyone else who reviewed, favorited, or added this story to their story alert!)

A/N:

Not a lot really happens in this chapter… mostly just a filler-shell with a mindless fluff filling… Not that I mind so much, it just means that I'm going to have to come up with some sort of conflict for this 'fic eventually.

XXXXXXXX

Zuko.

Originally I thought he was a jerk… but boy, this just shows how wrong I was.

I looked at the newest member of my service crew. Zuko gave me smile and winced slightly at the effect it had on his still-black-and-blue eye.

I couldn't help grinning back. God! What's the matter with me! The last time I felt this way around a guy was with Jet… Damn-it! I don't want to think about that jack-ass! Think happy thoughts…

Zuko looks good in his uniform. Black slacks. Blood red button-down collared shirt. Black silk tie… He looks _hot!_

Damn, Katara! Can't you think of something besides guys for a few seconds at least?

I couldn't help raking my eyes over him once more. I don't think I ever really appreciated how good that uniform looks on him… No wonder the Red-girls are so protective of him…

Apparently I can't stop. Maybe talking will help.

"So Zuko…" I began, wetting my lips slightly. "What'd you do to get on my service crew? You didn't manage to 'borrow' the position like you did with the detention slip?"

He smirked.

God! And I thought he was hot before!

"No," he began. "This time, I called in a favor."

I couldn't help laughing a bit at that. "Oh really!"

"Yes, your homeroom teacher Mrs. Hamilton owed me, so I decided to collect on it…"

"I'm not even gonna' ask," I decided, unable to keep an amused look off of my face.

Zuko looked extremely pleased with himself. "So, Katara, do you mind taking me to meet the rest of my service crew? I don't believe I've met them yet."

I took his hand in mine, turning away as I led him so that he wouldn't see my blush. His hand was warm compared to my own. A few moments later, his other hand covered the back of my hand, no doubt trying to make it seem less like a frozen slab of flesh. I almost shivered at the contact.

I turned to look at him, slowing my pace to crawl. Zuko gave me a reassuring smile before rearranging our hands so that the fingers were intertwined.

The position of the hands (if belonging to only one person) was such that if raised, it would seem like they were saying a prayer… Were we silently praying?

Ugh! Silly, silly Katara!

"This way," I breathed softly. I turned back around and gently tugged him into the school's storage building. Already assembled there were my friends. My appearance (especially with the Red Prince – as we liked to call him) caused a bit of a stir.

Sokka couldn't take his eyes off our interlocked hands. Suki looked between the two of us before her face settled into a knowing grin. Poor, confused Aang was telling the blind Toph who arrived with me…

Chaos. Utter, silent chaos.

Happy thoughts, Katara. Happy thoughts…

"Guys, this is Zuko, and he's now part of our service crew," I informed them, repeating my mantra of "happy thoughts" in my mind to relieve my nerves. Turning to the object of their stares, I added, "Zuko, this is Sokka, Suki, Aang, and Toph."

"You mean Toph-The-Great, don't you Sugarqueen?" Toph asked. "Or failing that, how about Toph-The-Magnificent?"

"I thought your alter-ego was called the Blind-Bandit?" Aang interrupted.

"Or that," the blind girl added.

"Well, Oh-Great-One," Zuko began, "it's nice to meet you."

To me, Toph remarked, "I like him. Good choice, Sugarqueen!"

I blushed at the implications.

Glancing at my face, Sokka sputtered, "Katara! We need to talk!"

Without further ado, he took my arm (ripping my hand free of Zuko's) and dragged me outside of the building.

"What are you doing hanging out with a guy like him Katara!?!" he exclaimed, blowing up in my face.

I have no idea what I'm going to tell him. I can't just say that I like Zuko, I mean… Oh my God! I like Zuko!

What am I going to do now?

XXXXXXXXXX

A/N:

Insane Self: guess what? *singsong voice*

Sane self: what?

Insane Self: I CAME UP WITH A MAJOR CONFLICT IN THE STORY!!! AREN'T YOU PROUD?

Sane self: Maybe.

[Insane self leans forward and whispers in the ear of Sane self.]

[Sane self looks at Insane self with newfound appreciation]

So you _are_ good for something…

[Begins petting Insane self on the head like a dog]

Good girl!

Insane self: *cocks head*

Why don't you tell the nice people what it is, huh?

[Sane self sprays water on Insane self's nose]

Sane self: Bad dog! I don't not say for you to speak!

*turns to audience*

One word: Azula

Zuko's no-good bitch of a sister is coming home from boarding-school with her two lackeys… Guess who she's going to mess with first?

You know the drill: READ AND REVIEW!


	4. Chapter 4:Obedience Training

Chapter 4: Obedience Training For/Of Dummies

A/N:

Yeah, you heard correctly! This story will not be dying off like the dinosaurs! Factions will be taking its queue from the mammals… it will survive and adapt. Ah yes… evolution is a beautiful thing.

XXXXXXXXX

I had no idea what to say. Sure, I just internally recognized my developing feelings for a guy I previously considered a spineless jerk, but that admission was not going to help me get out of hot water with Sokka.

Hmm… buying time would be good.

"Uh… Sokka?" I began with some slight timidity. As expected, my sort-of brainy, usually not-all-there, wannabe-warrior lug of a brother just started pacing back and forth in front of me, babbling incessantly – sometimes muttering, sometimes escalating into a red-faced shout.

After a minute or so of that behavior from him, I still had no idea what to say. I mean, it's not like I could come up with some sort of _sensible_ or _responsible_ reason for Zuko's addition to our service crew. Then again, I was almost tempted to yell out that I'm attracted to him – just for kicks… his face would be so funny!

But no… bad Katara! That's just a bad idea. If that happened, Sokka would completely abandon his daily Suki-make-out session in order to either stand directly between Zuko and me or enlist Toph and Aang to help him spy on us behind the bushes with a pair of our father's old army binoculars.

Brothers. Can't live with 'em… can't live– nope, that's pretty much it. Can't live with them. Note the finality of the period used for the punctuation. Big brothers are pains. Yeah! Big ol' pains in the rear that won't do any work!

"You know what, Sokka?" I ground out, my voice edged in steel…

Sokka stopped pacing, faced me, and blanked. That's right… he knew I was angry now. He knew I was going to call him out on whatever it is that's bothering me (and I reserve the right not to specify and/or name what issue I have with him). He knows I'm going to let loose a lot of harsh feelings and judgments. He's going to get verbally busted on his ass, and the best part? He knows it.

"You have NO RIGHT to criticize who I choose to associate myself with!" I yelled, shoving and jabbing my pointer finger for emphasis.

"But Jet—" he interjected as an excuse.

"—has nothing – and I mean NOTHING – to do with this! That was a LONG time ago! In that SINGLE puny instance you MAY have been right – but only ONCE! This is a whole different ballpark BUSTER!" I panted.

At the end of his rope, Sokka inserted, "But if you _like_ the Red Prince, then how is it differe—"

"_Whether_ or not I him is MY business, Sokka," I countered, "so just get off my case and Zuko's, alright!"

Somehow, what was supposed to be a question came out as a command. Hmmm… did I do that on purpose? If I hadn't been pulling all of my anger, irritation, and disappointment to the forefront of my thoughts, I probably would have giggled at the reluctant obedience that crossed his face. He would do as I asked – for now, at least. But one thing I _could_ count on is the fact that if – on the off chance - that I'm wrong, Sokka would be shouting out 'I told ya' so' from the mountaintops.

The though almost made me want to laugh, considering I immediately pictured my brother dressed in a yodeling outfit… it was bad enough that he couldn't sing to save his life! …Although his poetry wasn't half bad and his haikus were always entertaining.

"Fine, Katara," Sokka grumbled. "I hope you know what you're doing…"

As he walked away, I could tell that he would be sulking for the rest of the afternoon. Unless… Maybe I could convince Suki to cheer the big pansy up a little. After all, it's the least I could do for getting Sokka all worked up like that. And Suki enjoys alone time with her boyfriend – as does he. And maybe if the two of them were off together in some utility closet sucking each other's faces off, Zuko and I wouldn't be bothered by the interrupting presence of my brother…

Not like we'd be doing anything but talking, of course! I mean, how could we when we'll be working in the Hub the whole hour in front of all the Reds? We're not exhibitionists or anything, after all! At least… I know _I'm_ not. Is _he_? Is he the type of person to be into public displays of affection? Is he some kind of grabby-hands-guy?

See, this is why people who might, maybe, sort of like each other _talk_ before they get any more serious. Because seriously, I need to know these things! Talking is good… Talking is good.

Ah yes, my new mantra. You've gotta' appreciate three-syllable sentences – it just has that certain something to it… (idiocy?) not class exactly, more like brevity. But then Shakespeare did say that 'brevity is the soul of wit' and when it comes to the Bard, how can we argue?

Pulling myself from my thoughts (about time), I called out to my brother, telling him to send Suki out here for a moment so we could talk. With a mutter about "girly talks" and "hair braiding," he promises to oblige with a short dismissive wave.

When Suki arrived (barely a minute after my brother went back inside), she is wearing the devious smirk of the cat that caught the canary. "So…" she trails off. "You and Zuko, huh? Never saw that one happening…"

My jaw drops. My eyes widen. I feel like screaming out that he's NOT MY BOYFRIEND, except… that I might, kind of like it if he were. As it is, even if I did yell that, Suki would probably just shrug it off. She often says that I should move to Egypt someday, since I'm already so fond of living constantly in denial (de' Nile). Gotta' love that overused pun, hn?

Anyways, with a little bit of wheedling, I managed to throw Suki off the topic of Zuko and me – NOT that there _is_ a Zuko and me… _yet._ (Dog-gone-it! I can't even keep my mind off the idea! How am I going to keep Suki side-tracked?) But besides that, I addressed the topic of my brother – a subject that my friend was all too interested in losing herself in – and my plot was set.

Suki will be keeping Sokka distracted.

Sokka will be pleasurably distracted.

Toph and Aang will be doing whatever the heck they do when they should be doing…

And Zuko and I could _talk_.

XXXXXXXXXXX

A/N:

Sane self: So as you can see…

Insane self: WE'RE BA-ACK! I know, haul out the red carpet and the figurative booze, readers! We'll make it a party! We can mentally salsa the night away!

[Insane self starts salsa dancing in front of the computer]

I actually _know_ how to salsa dance now! Isn't it super?

Sane self: Anyways, we're (and by "we" I mean the sane mentality + the insane mentality that = the author of this fic) really happy to—

Insane self: - be BACK! Because we're AWESOME! Don't you think so!

[Insane self begins shaking invisible maracas as Sane self shakes her head]

Sane self: It's been a LONG day…


End file.
